New York City, even though it houses some powerhouse development studios, has …

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Even though the video game industry generated nearly $40 billion last year, a new study by the Center for Urban Future has pointed out that New York City has a startling lack of game developers housed in or around Manhattan. Even though other cities like Montreal, San Francisco, and Los Angeles have proved that game development is an incredibly lucrative field that relies on experts in a variety of technical skills, most of New York's computer experts instead work in the financial sector for money management firms and the like.

While the city does house a number of developers (the estimate is somewhere around 30), only a few of them actually employ more than a handful of people. While companies like Rockstar and THQ have well-populated offices in New York, these are the exceptions to the rule. Instead, most game developers are small start-ups that have begun to grow over time; the current estimate is that approximately 1,200 people work in the video game industry in NYC.

Another major factor limiting the influx of new developers is the fact that not many schools in the area actually offer game-related degrees like the Guild Hall or the Academy of Art College. Between that and the high cost of operating a business in New York, it's unsurprising that things are moving at a slower pace in the Big Apple. However, a number of different schools are working on implementing programs oriented towards teaching game design, but most of these programs have yet to actually be launched.

Ultimately, though, New York's video game industry has a great deal of potential for growth. While this potential hasn't fully been realized yet, the report makes it sound that if Mayor Bloomberg's administration makes an effort to bring in more developers, the city could easily become the next mecca of game development.